Spartan Gridders Edge Eagles, Look To Lasso Longhorns Next

Now that was a very good, entertaining, on the edge of your seat (if one was sitting down) high school football game.

Where do we even start? How about the final score? Scobey Spartans 26 Manhattan Christian Eagles 18!

The Saturday, November 2, Class 8-Man first-round playoff game was held in Churchill, where the Eagles do their nesting, which is located about five miles west of Belgrade and a 15-to-20-minute drive from Bozeman.

This contest was so exciting because the score never strayed outside of being a one-possession game, which proves just how close both teams were to each other talent wise.

Even when the Eagles had possession on their own 39-yard line with 0.08 still on the scoreboard clock in the fourth quarter and one last shot to create a tie, everyone there knew this game was not over. Fortunately for the Spartans, Manhattan Christian quarterback Christian Triemstra couldn’t spot an open receiver way down field to fling the bomb into the end zone and had to take off running, gaining only 13 yards to conclude the contest.

The Eagles will begin preparing for basketball season—they are always in the mix come tourney time!—while the Spartans (7-3, 346-145, 34.6-14.5) are prepping for a quarterfinal showdown in Fort Benton (8-1, 449-146, 49.816.2) Saturday, November 9. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Longhorn Field.

Here is a look at how Fort Benton fared throughout the regular season in order played: won 64-0 at Simms; was idle in week two; lost 56-18 at Belt; won 48-8 over Cascade; won 3626 over Choteau; won 61-6 at Harlem; won 62-14 over Shelby; won 72-0 at Rocky Boy; won 56-30 over Chinook; won 32-6 over Saint Ignatius last Saturday on Longhorn Field in the first round of the playoffs.

It was 43 degrees above zero with no wind when the Spartans kicked off to Manhattan Christian at 12:54 p.m.

All the Eagles did was march 53 yards in 13 plays—5 rushes, 7 passes— for a 6-0 advantage, using six minutes and 13 seconds of game clock in the process.

Scobey shot right back on its first play of offence and wasted little time getting on the scoreboard, 13 seconds to be exact. Junior quarterback Brecken Maher took the snap, went a few steps to his right (south) and cut up the field. Not one defender touched him on th...